Stray Cat Killed For Rabies Testing Did Not Have Virus

The stray cat pulled from a Bethlehem sewer last week did not have rabies, the Wright Animal Hospital reported yesterday.

The cat bit the woman who rescued it and the veterinarian who examined it. The cat was put to sleep so its brain tissue could be tested for rabies.

Although an animal can be quarantined for 10 days to see if it has rabies, the SPCA authorized the euthanasia of the sewer cat so it could be immediately tested for the deadly disease.

"But the main reason that cat was euthanized was not so much because of rabies but because it was wild and had no home," said Elizabeth Jones, founder of Forgotten Felines in Allentown.

"If they had quarantined that cat, it would have been turned over to the SPCA 10 days later and euthanized then," said Jones.

"No one would have wanted that cat. It was wild and it bit," she said. "But if someone is upset about the way that cat was handled, there are many other cats they can help."

Jones said her organization rescues, neuters and vaccinates wild cats and then returns them to someone who will feed them. If the cats are young enough and can be tamed, the organization tries to find them homes.

"If people really care about what happened to the sewer cat, they can call me," Jones said. "There are plenty of cats out there that need help and homes."